Judge sends Danny Ray Dial back to prison in Baker County case

Judge Matt Shirtcliff sent Danny Ray Dial back to prison after finding he had not complied with probation terms tied to a violent Baker City kidnapping case from October 2022. The revocation put into effect the sentence the court had already warned about: 40 months in state prison.

Dial, 35, had pleaded guilty in April 2023 to unlawful possession of a weapon and being a felon in possession of a firearm after admitting he pointed a gun at another person during the incident. Earlier court reporting said he originally faced three counts of first-degree kidnapping, along with third-degree assault, unlawful use of a weapon and felon in possession of a firearm. The case grew out of an episode in which three people were kidnapped, assaulted and threatened with guns in a Baker City home.

The original sentence gave Dial 36 months of probation, but it also carried a built-in consequence if he failed to complete supervision: 40 months in prison. Shirtcliff followed through on that condition when he revoked probation on May 27, 2026, turning a deferred prison term into an immediate one. For Baker County, the move underscores that probation in a violent firearms case is not a soft landing when a defendant does not meet the court’s expectations.

Court records cited in the reporting show Dial completed drug treatment through New Directions Northwest in Baker City in September 2024, indicating he had at least finished one part of the supervision plan before the court found the full probation terms had not been met. New Directions Northwest has also taken on a broader role in the county’s treatment network, including a Baker County deflection program built around substance use disorder assessments and referrals.

The underlying case has remained active for years. A Dec. 23, 2022 regional report said two additional suspects were arrested in the same kidnapping and assault case, showing the episode involved more than one defendant and was not limited to Dial’s plea deal. Baker County’s parole and probation office is listed at 3425 13th St. in Baker City, the same street address associated with New Directions Northwest in public listings, reflecting how closely supervision and treatment options are tied together locally.

With the probation revocation now complete, Dial’s case closes the loop on a violent 2022 crime, a 2023 plea and a supervision failure that ended with a state prison sentence already written into the original judgment.